Brief by Central Staff
Recreation – June 2004 – Colorado Central Magazine
ASPEN — The International Mountain Bicycling Associates has released a study that claims that mountain bikes don’t cause any more damage to trails than other uses, including hikers.
Claims that mountain bike wheels cause more damage to trails are “unsubstantiated,” according to IMBA’s Gary Sprung, a Crested Butte resident who conducted the study.
However, The Aspen Times didn’t have to go far to find even mountain bikers who didn’t quite agree with that rather brazen claim. Michael Thompson of Basalt, who was identified as both a mountain biking and hiking enthusiast as well as a trail builder, said improperly constructed trails tend to channel rather than shed water, and in that case, mountain bikes can cause more trail damage.
Wheels cause more erosion than hooves or feet when the soil is wet, he said. However, properly designed and built trails can absorb the impacts of mountain bikes with few problems.
